eThink Education, a total eLearning solutions provider, announces a partnership with Yet Analytics, a Baltimore-based company who provides Experience API (xAPI) powered tools and solutions to improve learning and talent development. With this partnership, Yet’s innovative solutions can help eThink clients capture and leverage learning and performance data to improve learning and talent development.

One of the most valuable yet scarcest resources we have in our school systems is teacher time. Inundated with countless demands--lesson planning, preparing materials, meeting with families, after school meetings and functions, and teaching itself--teachers are left with very limited, precious time to spend on arguably one of the most needed activities: professional development.

But when educators do get time to develop their skills, the content and resources readily available to them are often not relevant to the specific skill and level they need. And if educators resort to search engines like Google to find more tailored, specific content, they'll have to master the science of using the right set and permutation of keywords, which will still only lead to few helpful resources buried in pages and pages of unrelated content. Bottom line: it is too difficult and time-consuming for educators to efficiently find what they need.

The right professional learning content is not reaching the right educators at the right time.

Teachers often spend many hours at night or on weekends searching the internet for good instructional materials – or just good ideas about how to meld online learning into their classrooms. Sometimes, they consult curation sites that have evaluated these materials; sometimes they just consult other teachers on what they use.

The need for reliable evaluation has become more urgent with the flood of new, often free, online materials. These OER – open educational resources – may be good, bad or indifferent. How can school districts or teachers know?

“There’s more bad OER out there than good; that’s a fact,” said Rebecca Kockler, assistant superintendent of academic instruction for the state of Louisiana, at the annual SXSWedu conference last week in Austin, Texas. “We need to find the quality stuff and elevate it, for everyone.”

A new group was recently formed within a large technical professional organization to focus on advancing technologies used in learning environments.

ICICLE (short for Industry Connections Industry Consortium on Learning Engineering) is a new inudstry group within the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) that brings together big tech companies, startups and academic institutions.

Initial members of the group include big tech companies like Autodesk, Boeing,Google and IBM. Baltimore startups Yet Analytics and eThink Education are also members, along with Johns Hopkins affiliated global health nonprofit Jhpiego.

Shelly Blake-Plock, the CEO of data interoperability startup Yet Analytics, is currently the acting chair of the group. He said he collaborated with Avron Barr, a writer, teacher and entrepreneur who chairs a separate IEEE committee on learning technology standards, and IEEE Standards Association board member Robby Robson to bring it to fruition.

The goal of bringing the group together is to help define and push forward the still-new profession of learning engineering. It will help to align standards and product development.

“The Yet Adapter was born out of hundreds of conversations with learning professionals who needed a new kind of product in order to tap into the power of xAPI in their daily work. So we built it to be as intuitive as possible and as a standalone product that can be used with any learning record store.”

Yet Analytics has announced the launch of a new product built to help the designers of learning experiences merge existing data sets with high-resolution learning activity data. The product—called Yet Adapter—provides an intuitive visual approach to transforming existing data into data compatible with the state-of-the-art xAPI learning data specification.

xAPI—formally known as the Experience API—is a data interoperability specification purpose-built for learning and performance data. A learning record store is a datastore designed to store xAPI data. Developed by the Advanced Distributed Learning Initiative at the United States Department of Defense, xAPI has quickly become the go-to means of exchanging learning and training data in enterprise settings.

With so many great learning and networking events available for FREE this week, the Yet Analytics team is out and about taking advantage of all the great professional development opportunities and we think that you should be to!

As we put together our Innovation Week schedule, I shared three goals with our team: Whether it’s your first Innovation Week or your 6th, if you can…

Learn something you can apply to your work tomorrow

Share something you wish someone had told you when you got started

Meet someone that you want to work with someday

… you’ll be sure to have a great time and make a connection that will help grow our team and move our business forward. Here’s how we’ve decided to spend our Innovation Week:

The startup bringing data interoperability to training is looking for a full-time salesperson to build on traction. According to COO Brit Keller, the team is seeking candidates with experience in new business development and enterprise software sales. Along with working at arealLIST company, it’s also a chance to work out of the company’s recently-opened downtown office.

As our five finalists work to refine their simulations in preparation for Demo Day, we want to extend a big thank you to our review panel. These experts in VR/AR, ed tech, and education gave their time to review the outstanding 249 simulation concepts received during open submissions.

The review panel scored the full set of submissions against theChallenge criteriato determine which concepts advanced to thejudges. Their expertise is pivotal to the Challenge’s success, and will propel forward the next-generation of simulations that strengthen career and technical skills.

Yet Analytics announced today that Brit Keller has joined the company as Chief Operating Officer. Most recently, Brit managed the HR operational framework and built workforce analytics for Dun & Bradstreet in her role as Chief of Staff to the Chief People Officer. Prior to that, Brit led Client Services and Operations for AOL's advertising business, including the development and deployment of a new operational model as AOL introduced their enterprise solution, ONE by AOL.

I’m a dreamer. I dream that those who are involved in e-learning (online) and soon immersive (VR/AR/MR), learn and understand about the nuances of the various types of learning technology current and down the road.

Each piece can help you achieve amazing and outstanding results. But, as with anything, used wrongly or poorly, and the technology fails.

There are plenty of folks out there that get it. They understand that the most effective courses (regardless of micro or not) are non-linear (people can jump around). That they utilize adult learning and are engaging/interactive.

It’s no April Fool’s joke: The first quarter of 2017 is over. It was a busy quarter for corporate training, with several M&As and quite a few funding rounds from some younger companies, including members of four accelerators. From innovative learning technologies to the health care industry, e-learning platforms to IT training organizations, and more. If the first quarter is a hint of what’s to come, 2017 will be an exciting year in learning and development.

Everyone is looking at Austin for SXSW this week, and that means a chance to stand out. We’re seeing some efforts to represent Baltimore, as well as individual companies.

Here’s a look at who’s making moves so far:

ETC is making its presence known, with assistant director Jacqueline Albright on the ground at the tech festival. The incubator took steps to get everyone organized, with a Facebook group and the #ETCSXSW hashtag. ETC member companies Yet Analytics, Kapowza, Sickweather, Early Light Media and Collonies also made the trip. The visibility is also about helping others see Baltimore.

Are you on the hunt for a (pick all that apply) exciting/more profitable/challenging/mission-driven job?

Maybe you’re just curious as to what opportunities are out there for someone with your skill set?

What if you could meet face-to-face with hiring managers from local, national and Fortune 500 companies for $10, then unwind with them at a super-chill happy hour with the greater Baltimore tech and startup community in the same spacious venue?

But as that number keeps growing, it’s worth considering which of those companies are “real.” It helps people who track startups (like, say, journalists) keep tabs on the next big companies coming out of Baltimore.

That’s why Technical.ly created the realLIST: a roundup of the top companies whose moves we’ll be tracking but, also, companies which have already proven to be “real” in their short lifespans.

So what exactly makes a company real? For one, a bold idea. Are the founders hoping to cash in on a buzzy market or are they going after a big idea?

As we’re in the run up to the Learning Technologies 2017 conference, here David Patterson highlights some of the great elearning companies we look forward to seeing at the event. We also look at some of the trends and innovations we expect to see covered.

As is now almost a tradition, the UK elearning and learning technologies industry gathers under one roof in central London (well Kensington Olympia) for the annual event. As ever, there are a number of adventurous US and European vendors attending as well.

Now, the analytics company has just closed a $1 million Seed B round, bringing it to a total $2.3 million seed round raised since its launch in 2014. Yet plans to use the funds for new hires, especially in the operations and sales division.

"Baltimore data analysis startup Yet Analytics landed $1 million in new funding to grow its sales staff and support product development.

The round included investments from Grotech Ventures and TCP Venture Capital's Propel Baltimore Fund II. The funding comes a little over a year after the company closed another $1.3 million seed round led by Baltimore-based Panther Angels and including the Dingman Angels, Johns Hopkins’ A-Level Capital venture fund and the Baltimore Angels."

"Yet Analytics, the 2016 Tech Startup of the Year at the Baltimore Innovation Awards, announced Tuesday the company has secured $1 million in a seed investment round from a group including Grotech Ventures and TCP Venture Capital's Propel Baltimore Fund II. The close of this round brings Yet Analytics’ current investment funding to $2.3 million."

"A Baltimore startup posted another seven-figure raise to start 2017.Yet Analytics closed on $1 million in new funding, said CEO Shelly Blake-Plock.The investors are both from the region. Grotech Ventures is based in Virginia and has a Maryland presence. Propel Baltimore Fund II, is managed by Columbia-based TCP Ventures.The data-driven company has now raised $2.3 million, following a seed round in November 2015."

“We are honored to recognize these 99 solutions providers as Best of Elearning! 2016,” says Catherine Upton, Group Publisher, Elearning! Media Group. ‘The number of nominations and winning organizations is a testament to the innovation and engagement of the learning industry.”

"Because the nature of the tools at the disposal of [L&D professionals] is evolving so quickly, it is important that those same professionals have professional-grade data collection and analytics applications at hand."

At this year’s DevLearn conference, data analytics startup Yet Analytics will present new data structuring and real-time visualization capabilities for the Experience API(xAPI).

In delivering experience intelligence, Yet Analytics leverages the xAPI specification, an open standard originally designed by the Advanced Distributed Learning Initiative. xAPI allows for the interoperable collection of activity and human performance data from across a wide range of data sources. Drawing together multiplatform data sources—including web services, wearables, and simulations—in real time, Yet provides insight into activity, behavior, learning, and performance.

"Leave it to Yet Analytics CEO Shelly Blake-Plock to offer a mic drop moment at the Baltimore Innovation Awards.

Accepting the award for Tech Startup of the Year, he said, “Elon Musk thinks it’s all going to happen on Mars. We know it’s happening right here in Baltimore.” Then he walked offstage and out of the auditorium to much applause.

After nominations and more than 3,500 votes from the community, the fourth annual Baltimore Innovation Awards were handed out on Friday to close out Baltimore Innovation Week 2016 at the Maryland Institute College of Art’s Brown Center."

Everyone is excited for Baltimore Innovation Week! Check out the BIW calendar and our events section so you don’t miss anything. RJ Tech Tour is Kicking Off tonight at the ETC Open House Happy Hour from 5-7pm. Yet Analytics and Loople will be demoing alongside 7 other startups during the Kickoff.

Where else will Loople and Yet Analytics be during the week? Check it out!

"Tech’s diversity problem is well-documented, but strategies for creating a more inclusive team are less widely available.

That’s what BmoreOpen is aiming to address. The event, which is being held during Baltimore Innovation Week 2016, features seven speakers talking about diversity in tech and entrepreneurship from the perspective of gender, age, race and motherhood.

The free afternoon event is set to run from 3-5:30 p.m. at the University of Baltimore’s John and Frances Angelos Law Center (1401 N. Charles St.) on Sept. 27.

Spearheaded by Yet Analytics cofounder Margaret Roth and ETC Assistant Director Jacqueline Albright, the event arose out of conversations at a Technical.ly Baltimore stakeholder’s meeting in June. Jolie Savelle Kumin ofPixilated Photo Booth, Allie Tscheulin and this reporter were also involved in organizing."

"Betamore and Sagamore Ventures are teaming up to bring Beta City back for a second year. The event is set to be held at City Garage from 3-10 p.m. on Sept. 29, during Baltimore Innovation Week 2016 presented by 14 West.

Six startups, chosen from previously submitted applications, will pitch to open the event. Investors from firms like NEA, Grotech Ventures, Greenspring Associates and Plank Industries will hear the pitches and judge the competition.

New this year: up to $75,000 in prizes will be awarded.

Last year’s event, won by Yet Analytics and Citelighter, didn’t have monetary awards, but organizers said they received contributions from TEDCO, Johns Hopkins Technology Ventures, Evergreen Advisors, Baltimore Angels, SC&H Group, University of Maryland College Park and SunTrust Bank."

Yet Co-Founder to Speak at WOW Women of the World Festival

WOW Women of the World is a high-profile, global movement of festivals that celebrates women as a force for positive change and takes a frank look at remaining barriers to gender equality. Launched in 2011 in London, WOW festivals have engaged and inspired over one million women across five continents and cities in Australia, Egypt, India, Pakistan, the U.K., and the most recently in the U.S. at the Apollo Theatre in Harlem.

Yet Analytics co-founder Margaret Roth is speaking at the WOW Women of the World Festival in a panel titled "Solutions to Gender Bias in STEM." Women remain disproportionately underrepresented in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) disciplines, and often fail to achieve recognition or promotion to higher-level influential positions. What can be and is being done to address this issue?

MARICOPA, AZ-- (Marketwired - September 08, 2016) - Elearning! and GovernmentElearning! magazines, the industry voices of the enterprise learning and workforce technology market, announced today the Best of Elearning! Awards 2016 Finalists.

Readers and professionals from both the private and public sector cast more than 4,000 nominations for the best-in-class solutions across 29 product categories. Winners of each category will be revealed in Elearning! and Government Elearning! magazines in December and honored at the Best of Elearning! Celebration at the Enterprise Learning! Event.

"It’s time once again to pick the members of the tech community who should win a coveted Baltimore Innovation Award.

The Baltimore Innovation Week awards are an annual online vote highlighting the best in new thinking. After public nominations, the Technical.ly Baltimore team curates a list of nominees to be voted on by the local tech community — one vote per person. Though candidates can be nominated in multiple years and for different categories, no one can win the same category more than once. The spirit is to welcome in new leaders."

"Betamore and Sagamore Ventures announced Wednesday the judges who will select the winners of Beta City’s 2 nd annual live pitch competition on Sept. 29.

This year's Beta City event, showcasing local entrepreneurs and startups and hosted by local co-working space and incubator Betamore, will be held at City Garage in Port Covington. The pitch competition will feature six companies that will present their business pitch to the panel of judges and compete for around $75,000 in prize money...

Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake recognizes Yet Analytics co-founder Margaret Roth as one of the Inspired to Inspire Champions and Visionaries for National Women's History Month 2016. In an interview on CharmTV, Roth shares her inspiration.

"In this ongoing series, we ask executives, entrepreneurs and business leaders about mistakes that have shaped their business philosophy.

The Mistake: This is our first year as Yet Analytics, but our team has been together for about three years. There were five of us working on what would become Yet Analytics. We were trying to figure how people learn from multiple sources across different platforms, and we kept unashamedly and rudely trying to solve this problem. We had to do this."

"As head of NAB's Pilot program, John Clark is using his background in technology, new media and education to root out people and companies that may have some benefit for broadcasting as it attempts to reinvent itself for the digital age. His mantra: "What are things that we can do that serve our local communities, but at the same time continue to make us have great, growing and viable businesses?"

...But the most part, Pilot is not driven by the need to invest, Clark says. The pay-off of his efforts will come in other forms.

"We can work with companies on [NAB] projects using their ideas or technologies on test projects, prototypes or pilots. For example, Yet Analytics was a part of our Pilot Home Gateway at the NAB Show showing how to capture and display tracking data of usage of the Gateway.

"We can introduce new ideas and the people working on them to NAB members through presentations, gatherings, conferences and in many cases, one-on-one connections. We’ve had companies talk to our committee about location-based marketing and beacons, OTT delivery, and programmatic advertising, as just a few examples.""

“We’re especially honored that you stretched the rules a little bit to make it the Tech 11,” Protenus cofounderRobert Lord said while accepting the award on behalf of fellow cofounder Nick Culbertson and himself. “For those of you who know us, of course everyone treats us like a single human being.”"

It is at the core of her business. It shapes how she spends her free time working with organizations like EdTechWomen, which she co-founded. And connection is a major reason she thinks Baltimore is poised for greatness in the tech market.

To begin with the business, that would be Yet Analytics, a data analysis startup that raised $1.3 million in seed funding last year."

"We are delighted to share that we received an outstanding 298 second round Blueprint submissions from the schools participating in the CTE Makeover Bootcamp. Throughout the Bootcamp, schools further developed and refined their makerspace plans to turn their vision for a makerspace into a reality.

To help the judges review the tremendous number of Blueprint submissions, we assembled a panel of making experts from across industry, academia, the arts, and makerspace leadership. Their knowledge of makerspace best practices has provided the judges invaluable insight as they make their recommendations for honoree selection. We are honored to have so many making champions join the panel, and would like to extend a huge thank you to them for generously providing their time to the Challenge."

Yet Analytics co-founder Margaret Roth served as one of the review panelists.

"Ask somebody without an actual window to the technology scene to envision a tech startup and they may picture Pied Piper. That’s the fictional West Coast startup at the center of HBO’s “Silicon Valley,” which wraps its third season on June 26. How off the mark is that image?

Does the show get close enough to entice folks with actual tech success to tune in? A quick check with Tech 10 honorees suggests yes.

Granted, a couple of them haven’t seen it and at least one purposely avoids it.

“My career choices push me away from ‘Silicon Valley’ even though I’ve been told I should watch,” said Margaret Roth, chief revenue officer of Yet Analytics, who is more of a “Mad Men” fan."

"Women in technology are a driving force behind Maryland’s position as a technology powerhouse. In fact, Maryland ranks second among the states in the ratio of female to male workers in IT occupations (24%), according to ComTIA’s Cyberstates analysis.

The national average for women who hold computer and mathematical positions is 26.5%, however in Baltimore, women hold 31.2% of these positions. This, combined with a below average gender pay gap, puts Baltimore fourth in SmartAsset’s “Best Cities for Women in Tech” rankings.

See a trend? We do.

We saw an even greater trend when we started researching to find some of the state’s female tech leaders. There are so many women leading technology companies, conducting critical government work in technology, and breaking new ground in developing new technologies. It’s not just a few names out there. There are countless women in technology who are thriving here in Maryland."

Yet Analytics co-founder Margaret Roth is among the women in tech leaders recognized.

"LAS VEGAS—Pilot, formerly known as NAB Labs, previously announced that it would be showcasing ATSC 3.0 technology at the Futures Park during the 2016 NAB Show; as part of that, Pilot has announced that it will display a prototype ATSC 3.0 receiver and gateway demonstrating the Interactive Environment at its booth...

The home gateway combines an over-the-air TV tuner with Internet access, Wi-Fi connectivity and a software environment that enables user engagement. Pilot’s demonstration will feature examples of interactive multi-view programming from Fox Sports; local interactive news and weather programming from News Press & Gazette; recognition of local station members from PBS; on-demand content from Akamai; advanced analytics; real-time viewing and engagement metrics from Yet Analytics; and a Pilot channel featuring zoned and targeted advertising and advanced emergency alert capabilities.

Pilot developed the Interactive Environment prototype as part of its ATSC 3.0 Gateway project. The prototype will be on display at booth SU16009 as part of the Futures Park."

"The Baltimore Business Journal is recognizing these leaders in the technology community to be named one of the Tech 10 for either heading up or working with the top technology companies in the area.

These visionaries were chosen not because they necessarily run the largest companies or are the biggest names out there in tech, but because their companies will be leading the way in Baltimore as the city moves into the future."

Web development has an undeserved reputation. Many in our industry hesitate to call it "real programming," yet designing even the simplest web application draws upon deep traditions in networked computing.

"WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--A prototype ATSC 3.0 receiver and gateway demonstrating the Interactive Environment will be featured during NAB Show, April 18-21, 2016, Las Vegas Convention Center, Las Vegas, Nev., in the PILOT booth (SU16009) at the Futures Park exhibition in the east end of South Hall, Upper Level...

Advanced analytics for the increased engagement offered by the Interactive Environment of Next-Gen TV is another opportunity for broadcasters. Yet Analytics has integrated their software into the prototype gateway and will demonstrate real-time viewing and engagement metrics.

“This is early and important work that begins to show the promise of Next-Gen TV,” said Sam Matheny, NAB’s CTO. “We’d like to get to a place where we can share our prototype and SDK with other developers and content providers to build out additional and even more compelling use cases. I hope you’ll see something like that happen as we proceed.”

The Interactive Environment prototype was developed as part of PILOT’s ATSC 3.0 Gateway project, in collaboration with OpenZnet, Opera TV and Videon Central. Additional support for the demonstration was provided by Monumental Sports Network, true[X], Dolby®, Harmonic and Sinclair Broadcast Group."

The 2016 Maryland Incubator Company of the Year Awards publicly recognizes achievements by current clients and graduates of Maryland incubators and provides a forum for the nominees to increase their visibility in the business, technology and investment communities.

Yet Analytics, member of the ETC Incubate Baltimore program in Baltimore City, has been selected as one of the finalists for the 15th annual Maryland Incubator Company of the Year Awards.

The talk resonated with a few Baltimore founders attending SXSW who were in the audience.

Seeing Baltimore represented as a place that’s birthing new tech and innovation strategies on the same stage where President Barack Obama spoke a few days prior was inspiring for Yet Analytics cofounder Margaret Roth.

She said Plank’s talk was showing the way for Baltimoreans to think about ourselves. “We are national. We are big-time. We are a city that maters,” she said."

"DemoFest, the event at every eLearning Guild conference where practitioners are able to show their best work during an evening of networking and camaraderie, always ends with awards that are decided through votes by attendees. This year, 50 projects in 11 categories qualified for exhibition (Figure 6), and the room was packed with observers for two hours."

"The National Association of Broadcasters is taking a look around the corner to see what vehicles are coming in the world of broadcast—and possibly to pilot them. NAB has been exploring broadcasting startups, and now it plans to expand its innovator initiative.

NAB Labs is in the midst of a transition—complete with a name change to PILOT—after investing with three early-stage companies. One is Haystack TV, in which users can set up personalized video news streams. Another is Antenna, which allows publishers and retailers to create simple, customized audience-feedback tools on mobile and web content. And the third is Yet Analytics, a platform built to connect data for decision makers."

And perhaps more important, in an industry as entrenched in rigid news formats as print newspapers ever were, companies can see the case for letting startup ventures do the disrupting rather than trying to develop such products on their own.

Sam Matheny, NAB's chief technology officer, told me in a phone interview that the other two investments have been in Antenna, a content engagement company that harvests information on how users interact with mobile and Web content, and Yet Analytics, which specializes in multi-source data collection."

"SXSW is an inspiring example of how technology has become ingrained into our culture. No longer just a social media and technology show, the event has evolved to become one of the biggest cultural events of the year. It is an event where some of today’s great software companies, like Twitter, Foursquare, GroupMe (now part of Skype/Microsoft), and Glancee (now part of Facebook) have stepped on stage, and SXSW has helped catalyze them to become world influencers in many ways. The event even attracts world leaders like President Obama to speak on the cultural importance of technology permeating all aspects of government, commerce and our economy.

So, this week’s BUILD Newsletter highlights the bits and bytes which stood out in Austin, including the President’s keynote, and some of the incredible innovations showcased at the event such as apps that will feed the hungry, voice-based interactions that allow people silenced by ALS to communicate, and how big data and advanced analytics are making new waves in government.

DZone reported on big data startup Yet Analytics and the Advanced Distributed Learning Initiative (ADL) of the U.S. DoD, who presented an update on the Experience API. The platform supports a pretty robust set of developer resources and is expected to increase the ability to track training and performance analytics, combining data from web and mobile services, virtual reality, video games and simulations, wearables, and the Internet of Things."

"With last weekend’s Glam TechExpo, Coach L brought the large and small together in event form. Attendees had a taste of what the huge company was up to at the Under Armour Performance Center on Friday night. On Saturday, they got a look at other entrepreneurs down the street from UA’s headquarters in a Knights of Columbus hall in Locust Point.

The Glam Tech expo, which Coach L hopes to expand beyond Baltimore, provided a look at wearable technology, and insights into how the fashion and tech worlds are influencing each other. After all, they’re both about spotting the future before it arrives.

"SXSWInteractive is a massive event. Even writing that statement doesn’t feel like I’m doing justice to the size of the event. Most events that I attend are confined to one location, like a hotel conference center or complete convention center. But SXSW is large enough to take over a convention center, an events center, and several hotel conference centers...and just about every available open space in between.

Representing the L&D community at SXSW was Craig Wiggins and Margaret Roth presenting a session on xAPI. They also presented their session at SXSWedu, and I was told it was well received. It was fun to hang out with Craig at the event and learn more about xAPI and how it’s currently being used."

"At this year’s South by Southwest (SXSW) Edu and Interactive conferences, big data startup Yet Analytics and ADL — the Advanced Distributed Learning Initiative of the U.S. Department of Defense — will be co-presenting on a new model of data technology and will be sharing the work of over fifteen organizations currently involved in the open source community which has grown up around it.

At the center of this technological community is the Experience API, (xAPI for short). A data interoperability specification originally designed to provide an increased ability to leverage new data sources involved in the tracking of training and performance analytics, xAPI provides a way to leverage the power of experiential big data derived from web and mobile services, virtual reality, video games and simulations, wearables, and the Internet of Things."

The women are being recognized in honor of Women’s History Month, following a citywide program that sought out written essays from individuals about the women who inspired them most.

A review panel, including Mayor Rawlings-Blake, carefully deliberated over the numerous submissions and selected eight winners. These extraordinary women will be honored during a private dinner with the Mayor, as well as featured on CharmTV.

“As I reviewed each of these essays, I was reminded about the impact that women can have in changing lives,” Mayor Rawlings-Blake said. “I am so pleased to honor these women as part of Women’s History Month, and I look forward to meeting with them in person and learning first-hand what makes them so inspirational.”

Yet Analytics co-founder Margaret Roth is one of the women recognized for this honor.

"At this year’s South by Southwest (SXSW) Edu and Interactive conferences, big data startup Yet Analytics and ADL — the Advanced Distributed Learning Initiative of the U.S. Department of Defense — will be co-presenting on a new model of data technology and will be sharing the work of over fifteen organizations currently involved in the open source community which has grown up around it.

At the center of this technological community is the Experience API, (xAPI for short). A data interoperability specification originally designed to provide an increased ability to leverage new data sources involved in the tracking of training and performance analytics, xAPI provides a way to leverage the power of experiential big data derived from web and mobile services, virtual reality, video games and simulations, wearables, and the Internet of Things."

"Part of the mission of NAB Labs has been to invest in “development and commercialization of new technologies that have the potential to advance broadcasting in the digital age.” Investments over a decade have included Yet Analytics (2016), Antenna (2015) and Syncbak (2007), an NAB investment made before the name NAB Labs existed.

NAB has not made public how much money is involved in each investment."

"WASHINGTON—“No broadcaster left behind” could be the moniker of the National Association of Broadcasters’ newly renamed investment arm, a move that recognizes that this association of broadcasters can no longer just be about broadcasting."

"The then-NAB Labs made investments in a number of startups that were developing technologies that would be beneficial for broadcast. In January, just prior to announcing the name change, NAB Labs made public its investment in Yet Analytics, a Baltimore startup that provides technology platforms for the collection and analysis of data within Fortune 500 companies and other large organizations. The essence of the technology is that it can simplify and leverage so-called “big data” analytics. “Here there was this notion of big data and this sort of multiplatform measurement,” Matheny said.

According to Yet Analytics CEO Shelly Blake-Plock, broadcasters will continue to see an increase in the number of data sources and the variety of data types now being produced across industries. “It is in this environment that the real-time collection and analysis of performance metrics will provide game-changing insight into the way that businesses function in a fully-immersive digital world,” he said."

The California-based startup aggregates content from a variety of sources for a continuous stream of tailored news. The videos can be viewed on mobile devices, as well as on connected TVs. Along with the investment, NAB Chief Technology Officer Sam Matheny will join Haystack TV as an adviser."

"The investment complements other Pilot initiatives, such as its recently announced investments in Yet Analytics, a Baltimore-based company that provides cutting-edge platforms for multi-source data collection and analysis, and Antenna, a Durham, N.C.-based content engagement company that captures reactions from users about mobile and web content."

"Over the past year, I’ve been interviewing people in the Baltimore Tech community to find out how companies get started with funding, advice for hiring that first employee, and where to work once you’ve outgrown your basement. But my favorite questions — and the ones I ask at the end of every interview —are: Why Baltimore? What is your favorite thing about this city?" Yet Analytics co-founders Rose Burt and Margaret Roth share why they love Baltimore in this video from SmartLogic.

"Shelly Blake-Plock, President and CEO of Yet Analytics, Inc. presented at the committee’s Nov. 10, 2015 meeting. He provided examples of projects in other cities in which existing infrastructure is used to make cities Smart Cities. For example, in Chicago lamp posts are used to help protect asthmatic citizens. Technology is affixed to lamp posts which pings the smartphones of asthmatics before they ever step foot outside. The data is collected live, in real time."

The Crunchies were held on Monday, Feb. 8, at the San Francisco War Memorial Opera House, with comedian Chelsea Peretti hosting. Among the honorees were some startups you’ve probably heard about called Slack, Facebook, Uber and SpaceX.

But Baltimore was also represented on the West Coast. Yet Analytics cofounders Shelly Blake-Plock and Margaret Roth were among 16 startups demoing for attendees of the event."

This post curates resources shared via the backchannel of the 2016 Learning Technologies Conference and Exhibition being held February 3-4 in London. Yet's recently published ebook "xAPI: An Introductory Guide" was included in this list of the best resources shared during the conference.

Money may be the desired end result of an initial outside investment round, but the process of raising capital is ultimately about setting a course for the company, Yet Analytics cofounders Shelly Blake-Plock and Margaret Roth told a group of entrepreneurs and community members at Startup Soiree on Wednesday night. Blake-Plock described the initial investment round as a mortgage on the company’s future.

“When we started up this company, we didn’t start it for the purpose of getting a mortgage, we started it for the purpose of building a home,” he said."

"WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) today announced the evolution of its innovation arm – NAB Labs – which will become PILOT, an initiative to bring together leading edge companies, organizations and educators to advance broadcast technology and broadcaster innovation. PILOT is honored to welcome Accenture, Akamai, Frankly, Google, Nielsen, Shareablee and Yahoo! to join with NAB as charter members of the initiative."

In this episode of the Startup Soirée Podcast, Patrick talks with Margaret Roth of Yet Analytics. Margaret Roth and Shelly Blake-Plock will be speaking at the 2016 Startup Soirée season kick-off at Arch Social Club on January 27, 2016.

In the Podcast, Margaret and Patrick discuss the lead up to raising Yet Analytics $1.3M seed round, what brought Margaret to Baltimore, and what it is like to build a business in Baltimore City.

"Right in the geographic center of Baltimore, a group of Reservoir Hill neighbors have grown fond of the area’s historic homes and its proximity to Druid Hill Park. But the community of people from all walks of life has proven to be the real draw. After spending several years convening residents in the wider Central West Baltimore area, they learned that their own pocket isn’t unique.“It became very clear that the creative class and innovation economy was really our core competency here in this part of the city and what could really generate the biggest outcome for our future,” said Dale Terrill, who is vice president of the board of the Mount Royal Community Development Corporation (MRCDC), a group formed by the neighbors to put a strategy behind that insight.

Now MRCDC is sponsoring a framework for economic development that puts startups and small businesses at the center of revitalization."

Shelly Blake-Plock is the CEO and Yet Analytics. Based in Baltimore, Yet builds software that allows decision makers at major businesses and organizations to improve their human capital through big data analysis. The company’s technology has been applied to test emergency responses, train medical staff, enhance education, prevent theft, and more.Earlier this year, Yet rolled out Yet Core, a platform built on the U.S. Department of Defense’s Experience API (xAPI) that measures and evaluates human performance data, which it collects from a wide array of sources such as wearables and social networks. As of this writing, the company is in the midst of relaunching its website, but those interested in Yet can follow along with its news and culture at the Yet Analytics blog.

The latest investment by the National Association of Broadcasters’ NAB Labs could help radio better harness the big data that increasingly drives the broadcasting, measurement and advertising industries.

The NAB has invested an undisclosed sum in Yet Analytics; the company provides cutting-edge platforms for the multi-source collection and analysis of performance data for Fortune 500 companies and other organizations. Their goal is to make that data more visible and useful.

The NAB says the investment is part of its continuing commitment to innovation and the incubation of new ideas.

Baltimore-based Yet Analytics leverages open source technologies using methods originally developed within the U.S. Department of Defense. Intended to simplify and leverage the data, Yet Analytics has applied its technology to improve workforce efficiency. Last year, it received the Nielsen Data Visionary Award at TechCrunch Disrupt SF in San Francisco.

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) announced today that its technology division, NAB Labs, has invested in Yet Analytics, a Baltimore-based startup that leverages open source technologies using methods originally developed within the U.S. Department of Defense. Yet Analytics provides cutting-edge platforms for the multi-source collection and analysis of human and machine performance data within Fortune 500 companies and other large organizations.

The Department of Defense developed the technology as a way of collecting interoperable data across multiple data sources for use in performance assessment and analysis. The essence of the technology is to simplify and leverage big data analytics, which has many applications in today’s data-driven world. Yet Analytics has applied this technology to improve workforce efficiency and in 2015, the company received the Nielsen Data Visionary Award at TechCrunch Disrupt SF (San Francisco).

"Mark can’t help but whistle a little as he waits for his top-performing employee, Josh, to come into his office. Although Josh has only been with the company 18 months, he’s already come up with several productive ideas that made a big impact on the company’s success. Mark knows there are big things in store for this young man. He plans to promote him within the next six months.

But then Josh enters his office and hands Mark his resignation letter. He’s found a new job with better opportunities for advancement. Mark is shocked -- he thought he was already offering Josh what he needed.

Unfortunately, this disconnect is not uncommon. A 2015 Saba survey of 1,000 HR professionals and 1,000 employees in the U.S. and the U.K. found that while 60 percent of HR leaders believe their companies provide clear career paths, only 36 percent of employees agree."

"The Baltimore Angels, founded in 2009 with the mission to invest profitably while also having a social impact on the Baltimore innovation and start-up community, has continued its growth in both investments and membership over the past year. The group recently surpassed $5M in cumulative investments, $4M of which was invested by the group over the past 2.5 years. $1.7M has been invested in 2015 to date. Furthermore, the group’s membership has grown from 30 members in 2012, to over 50 members today.Also in 2015, The Baltimore Angels launched a new website design (www.baltimoreangels.com) and brought on their first full-time employee, Michael Tucker, a Baltimore native and a Venture For America fellow.

“We want to lead in Baltimore not only as a premier source of angel investment capital, but also as a mentorship and advisory resource for Baltimore’s many innovators and entrepreneurs” said Greg Cangialosi, Co-Chairman and Co-Founder of the Baltimore Angels. “We’ve drawn an extremely diverse crowd of angel investors from many facets of both the investment and start-up world. We want to make Baltimorean even more attractive place to innovate, raise money, and successfully launch a company.”

A handful of the Baltimore Angels investments include education technology companies such as Allovue and Citelighter, and big data companies such as Yet Analytics. All three companies are Baltimore based."

"Waverly startup Yet Analytics has raised $1.3 million in investment to put toward hiring and its data analysis technology.

Yet's technology gathers data from across multiple systems within a company or organization and helps identify trends and patterns to improve outcomes.

A host of local investors contributed to the investment round. Cockeysville-based Panther Angels led the round. The investment firm was launched by the co-founders of Astrum Solar, a Howard County energy firm sold to Direct Energy for $54 million last year.

Other investors included: Baltimore Angels, a coalition of local technology executives; Dingman Angels, an investor group based out of the University of Maryland's Robert H. Smith School of Business; and A-Level Capital, a venture capital fund recently launched by Johns Hopkins University students.

Yet is based out of the city's Emerging Technology Center business incubator and is also a member of Betamore, a Federal Hill incubator and technology industry group, and 1776, a Washington, D.C., incubator."

"This week, an entrepreneur specializing in data analysis is urged to not fall in love with technology for technology’s sake. — Dan Beyers

The entrepreneur

Shelly Blake-Plock and his team collectively have decades of technical experience in information security, learning science, and engineering data platforms. Working within the open-source software community, they built a commercial data platform based on Department of Defense technologies.

The team founded Baltimore-based Yet Analytics in November 2014, with Blake-Plock at the helm. After several months of pilot testing, the start-up is working with its first set of clients.

The pitch

Shelly Blake-Plock, chief executive, Yet Analytics

“We’ve built a platform that allows for the interoperable collection of big data from a variety of sources used by corporations to track human performance and outcomes – everything from Web services and mobile applications to wearable devices. We bring that all together in one place in a common format, allowing for accessible and useful data analysis."

"The broadcast industry is moving towards integrated multi-screen advertising. Recent Nielsen and comScore studies have shown that viewers are more engaged and more likely to watch TV programming longer while using second screen apps.

A 2014 Nielsen study, conducted in Canada, shows that the spending/revenue of multi-screen campaigns will increase significantly over the next three years. In 2014, about 25% of ad campaign budgets were spent on multi-screen apps and this number is expected to rise to 50% in 2017...

Yet Analytics, a data analytics company that streamlines the data collection process, recently received the 2015 Nielsen Data Visionary Award at TechCrunch Disrupt SF. Although this startup currently does not offer any product for media measurement, its technology has great potential in tracking second screen activities."

"TRAINING SUPERHEROES: At the iNACOL Annual Conference in Orlando, Florida, nonprofit The Learning Accelerator(TLA) and Yet Analytics announced the launch of a competency-based framework derived from educator blended learning professional development. As part of a project called the Educator Learning Concept Model, the framework (shown below) resulted from the merging of the iNACOL Blended Learning Educator Competency Framework and the practice-based work of the TLA Human Capital cohort, reports Margaret Roth, CMO of Yet Analytics.

Eventually, TLA and Yet Analytics plan to link blended learning content from the Human Capital organizations (BetterLesson, Relay GSE, Friday Institute, Highlander Institute, TNTP, and PowerMyLearning) to each of the framework's competencies on a platform that districts and schools can access for PD. Additionally, Roth reports that eventually, the platform will track teachers' progress on competencies, providing recommendations against what a person could know.

"There is alignment with regards to what Big Data is, how it can be used, and its future. Discrepancy lies in the perception of the state of Big Data today. Some companies have been working with Big Data for years, others feel unable to perform “real” analytics work due to the data hygiene required, as well as the necessary integration of disparate databases.

To more thoroughly understand the state of Big Data, we interviewed 14 executives with diverse backgrounds and experience with Big Data technologies, projects, and clients."

Margaret Roth has been maximizing her impact on Baltimore since arriving as a Johns Hopkins University undergraduate in 2007. She was honored this summer by being named to The Daily Record’s prestigious “20 in Their Twenties” list for her work as co-founder of Yet Analytics, a cutting edge tech startup based in the city, and for her countless efforts to give back to her community.

Yet Analytics was born of a partnership between Margaret, now Chief Marketing Officer, and her JHU School of Education Master's Program Professor Shelly Blake-Plock and colleague Rose Burt. The startup, which was recently awarded the Nielsen Data Visionary Award at TechCrunch Disrupt in San Francisco, works to improve data interoperability, to “make the data of the connected world more visible, accessible, and actionable,” among diverse digital devices.

Baltimore education technology company Citelighter and data analysis firm Yet Analytics were crowned the winners of the Beta City pitch competition.

The pitch day was the kickoff event for Beta City, the Oct. 1 entrepreneurship showcase organized by Betamore and Plank Industries, Under Armour CEO Kevin Plank’s private investment arm. Beta City also served as the public debut for Plank Industries’ City Garage, the 133,000-square foot former city bus garage converted to an innovation hub for Under Armour and technology startups.

"Yet Analytics is one Baltimore startup that's showing no signs of slowing down.

Since launching last year, the firm has landed deals for pilot programs of its data analysis platform with three Fortune 500 companies (with many more in the pipeline) and is expecting to bring in $500,000 of revenue this year. The company has taken hom top honors as "dta visionaries" at an annual TechCrunch event and was among eight companies selected to pitch to a panel of the Baltimore-area's leading venture capital firms at Beta City's pitch day."

"A giant sign reading "Made in America" loomed over Shelly Blake-Plock. In front of him was a group of investors from some of Maryland's top venture capital firms.

But the founder of Baltimore big data firm Yet Analytics was looking beyond both the state and the country.

“I want to create a big company that makes big change in the world,” he said emphatically.

The ambition and passion typified the Venture Pitch Day, which was primarily organized by Betamore. The event kicked off Beta City, a daylong event that let the public into City Garage in Port Covington for the first time, and was organized by Betamore, Plank Industries, Technical.ly and Startup Maryland. It was the culminating event ofBaltimore Innovation Week.

The day was a celebration of Baltimore’s startup community, and served as likely the best opportunity of the year for folks from all sides of the tech scene to get together in one room.

As a result, however, it was also a reflection that the startups that make up the scene are looking beyond the boundaries of the city as they build their products.

During the Yet Analytics pitch, for instance, Blake-Plock made the case that the big data analytics and interoperability platform the team is building at the Emerging Technology Centers’ 33rd Street campus could help the biggest companies.

At the same time, however, he said, “Everything is built in Baltimore.”

"Baltimore data analysis startup Yet Analytics in October will close an oversubscribed funding round expected to top $750,000.

The Panther Angels, a Baltimore investment firm, led the seed round with a $200,000 investment. Yet Analytics plans to announce the total amount raised when the round closes in October. The money will go toward doubling the company’s seven-person staff over the next four months and building out its data analytics platform, said CEO Shelly Blake-Plock."

"Are you tired of hearing about “big data”? The term might be overhyped, but it’s not going anywhere. We live in a world where we’re inundated with information, from a variety of sources that come at us quickly; but big data is useless without some sort of analysis to make sense of it all. Increasingly, Nielsen’s mission has been to turn big data into something far more useful for making impactful business decisions: Smart data. Smart data is actionable data and it requires data companies to be innovative and fast moving.

One way to do this is by investing in small and early-stage start-ups to encourage the digital innovation that moves businesses forward. It’s win-win; start-ups receive funding, strategic guidance, operational support, office space, hands-on management, business development and access to a network of global partners. The larger company fosters innovation in the industry and access to cutting-edge technology that fuels business forward. Nielsen Innovate, an early-stage technological incubator, was launched in 2013, focusing on market research, consumer behavior, data analytics, mobile and new media."

"Hi there! My name is Monica Bannan, I'm an SVP at Nielsen working with our strategic partners.

We at Nielsen have really enjoyed the last three days here at TechCrunch, we're inspired by the creativity we've seen from all of you.

At Nielsen we really focus on taking big data and transforming it into smart data to help our clients better understand their business performance from advertising ROI to E-commerce. In that spirit we're offering the first ever Nielsen Data Visionary to the startup that best exemplifies those principles. This year's winner will receive a $5000 cash prize, 6 months API access, and one on one time with a Nielsen executive, data scientist, or technologist that best matches the startup's mission.

Before I announce the winner I'd like to tell you what really struck us about this startup. They have a remarkable ability to take really diverse data sets from non-traditional sources, apply insight to help their clients to run their businesses smarter and more efficiently. Without further ado, we'd like to present this award to Yet Analytics."

"This evening, Yet Analytics, a Baltimore-based tech startup, was awarded the Nielsen Data Visionary Award at TechCrunch Disrupt SF. The Nielsen Data Visionary Award goes to the startup that harnesses data in the most seamless and creative way to deliver a unique user experience and insight.

“We are very honored to receive this award,” said Yet CEO Shelly Blake-Plock, “We are proud of the work our team has done and believe this award recognizes our energy and dedication. As a Baltimore company, we are also proud on behalf of our city and our tech community and are glad to see Baltimore-built technology represented and recognized here in Silicon Valley.”

Yet Analytics exhibited at the huge tech conference’s Startup Alley. Nielsen (think TV ratings), which is the official sponsor of the confab, looked to give the award to “the startup harnesses data in the most seamless and creative way to deliver a unique user experience or insight.”"

"In June 2015, the White House’s Office of Management and Budget (OMB) issued a Memorandum, which mandates the exclusive use ofHTTPS with HSTS across all Federal government web services. It states clearly that “all publicly accessible Federal websites and web services only provide service through a secure connection. The strongest privacy and integrity protection currently available for public web connections is Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure (HTTPS).”

It stands to reason that as a US Department of Defense initiative, the Experience API (xAPI) should hold itself, at a minimum, to that standard.

With a thumb’s-up from ADL, my Yet Analytics’ colleague Jason Lewis and I volunteered to draft the skeleton of an open source xAPI security protocol which meets the demands of the OMB memo. I presented our initial ideas at the xAPI Bootcamp at ADL’s Alexandria Co-lab in July of 2015. The near-term goal is to produce a formal draft for public comment through the xAPI community by the end of the year. We will publish a schedule for revisions and a final draft and would then like charter community members to sign on to the protocol. The charter members will likely draft an xAPIsec certification to be published and managed through the forthcoming industry consortium that will steward xAPI."

"Venture Pitch Day is the first event of three in BetaCity, hosted at City Garage (101 W. Dickman St. Baltimore, Md. 21230), a new marquee event that will illuminate and celebrate the startups and businesses that are fueling the region’s economic and employment growth. The day-long event will showcase the strengths and growth of entrepreneurship in Greater Baltimore. Beta City will provide a platform for leading regional entrepreneurs to demonstrate their products and services, and share their stories with venture capital leaders and the larger regional business community."

Yet Analytics is proud to support this work and the Baltimore tech community.

"‘Big Data’ is here; the landscape is growing increasingly complex. So in this 2015 DZone Guide to Big Data we’re focusing on post-Hadoop tools and techniques, with special emphasis on streaming data processing and visualization. We want to help reduce devs’ Big Data pain while mapping analysts’ Big Data enthusiasm to reality."

Yet Analytics CMO Margaret Roth was interviewed as part of the "Executive Insights on Big Data" section by Tom Smith.

"The U.S. Department of Commerce's National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and several partners are launching a new effort to bring together communities with challenges and innovators with the technology to overcome them.

To support the challenge, NIST has teamed with US Ignite, a nonprofit focused on the creation of next-generation Internet applications that provide transformative public benefit. Partners in the challenge will include the National Science Foundation; the International Trade Administration; the U.S. Departments of Transportation and State; the International Trade Administration; the private sector’s IBM and AT&T; nonprofits WeGO, FIWARE and the Industrial Internet Consortium; and the governments of the Netherlands and South Korea. Other participating members include Intel, Qualcomm, Bosch, Siemens, CH2HL, Mathworks, Pecan Street Inc., Yet Analytics, MIT, Vanderbilt, UT Dallas, the University of North Texas and Ohio State University. "